Learning styles of undergraduate athletic training students in a CAATE-accredited athletic training education program
Date
2013
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Context: Assessing learning styles of athletic training (AT) students may assist educators in enhancing their student’s educational experience. Objective: To identify learning styles of undergraduate AT students and determine if a specific learning ability translates into program admission acceptance and success on the Board of Certification (BOC) examination for athletic trainers. Design: Prospective, cohort. Setting: Classroom. Participants: Three hundred and fifteen (110M, 205F) AT students (18-25yrs.) between 2004-2012 were tested. All students were enrolled (or seeking enrollment) in a CAATE accredited athletic training education program (ATEP) at a midsized Division-I institution. Intervention: The Kolb Learning Style Inventory (LSI) is a 12-question survey that indicates our preferred approach to learning in everyday life. Athletic Training Interest (ATI) students are administered the LSI annually. Students accepted into the program repeated the LSI during their final year in the ATEP. BOC exam pass/fail rates were collected from students after graduation. Main Outcome Measures: Concrete experience (CE), active experimentation (AE), reflective observation (RO), and abstract conceptualization (AC) learning abilities were compared to program admission (yes/no) and success on BOC exam (pass/fail). Indicators of learning style were also derived. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine if learning ability (CE, AE, RO, AC) predicted admission into the ATEP and success on the BOC exam. Results: The preferred learning style pre-ATEP admission was accommodator, while the preferred style of ATEP students in their final year was converger. The four learning abilities predicted admission into the ATEP (x2 = 18.622, df = 4, p = .001); however they failed to predict outcome on the BOC exam (x2 = 2.653, df = 4, p = .617). Learning abilities CE (p = .04) and RO (p = .008) had the greatest effect on predicting ATEP admission. Conclusions: AT students have a broad range of learning styles which create challenges for educators. Admission success in this cohort of AT students is best predicted from those displaying the CE and RO learning abilities. Conversely, none of the learning abilities predicted BOC exam outcome. Key Words: Prediction, Health Education, Instruction, BOC Exam